According to Wikipedia,
the American expression "800 lb. gorilla" refers to:

The term is often
used to describe...a powerful corporate entity that has such a large
majority percentage of whatever market they compete within that they
can use that strength to crush would be competitors."

In the MMOG world, there's no question that href="http://tentonhammer.com/wow">World of Warcraft
represents the 800 lb. gorilla. In fact, WoW is so omnipresent that no
AAA MMOG releases without gamers inevitably making comparisons. We all
wonder which game on the horizon, if any, will be capable of ending
WoW's 5 year reign of supremacy.



For the time being, WoW is indeed a seemingly unstoppable force, and so
it's no surprise that when we asked our premium member community to
pose questions to developers and other gaming industry insiders the
first question we received related to WoW and its affect on the
industry. Here's the topic we asked our developer friends to comment
on, as presented by our member:

The developers who jumped in on this topic gave us candid answers
ranging from realistic to optimistic, but never pessimistic. Read on to
learn what they had to say about game development in a market dominated
by World of Warcraft.

---

Colin Dwan

Project Manager, href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/taxonomy/term/177">Fallen
Earth



There’s no denying
that the market has been irreversibly changed by the 800 lb gorilla.
Thankfully, I don’t think it’s been locked into a single track. While
funding and the bottom line can’t be ignored, there is a lot of room
both cellpadding="10" width="253">

creatively and technically to deliver on all the promise that
online communities provide.



The key is not in trying to
capture World of Warcraft's particular brand of
lightning in a bottle, but to boil
down and analyze how they speak to players worldwide. There is an
undeniable attraction to being intertwined with a community of people
that can accomplish far greater things than you ever could by yourself.
Whether you want to actively engage with other players or just exist in
the same space, there are so many mind blowing worlds out there that
the industry will not dry up from lack of new ideas.



The MMOG
audience pre-WoW was a significantly different makeup and had different
expectations than today. If anything, I'm excited to see how the
challenge of appealing to this larger audience will force developers to
come up with new and exciting worlds.

---

David Chang

EVP Business Development, OnNet USA ( href="http://gamescampus.com/">GamesCampus)



I think World of Warcraft is certainly influential,
but by no means does it completely define our present or future. Nor
have the major players captured the market.



There are a lot of innovative games coming to market in the MMO
category that do not use WoW as a model for success. Actually, I
believe it is the smaller companies, such as ourselves, that are
willing to take risks in innovation, where we are finding that the
publicly traded game companies are sticking to fairly established
formulas. I do think style="margin: 10px; border-collapse: collapse; float: right; width: 300px;"
border="1">

href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/82749"> style="border: 0px solid ; width: 300px;" alt=""
src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/82749">

David Chang
of OnNet USA

that given everything that has transpired in the past two years the
major companies will play safer with IPs and focus more on bottom
lines, where the smaller companies and independent studios will
continue to innovate looking for a new take on the genre.



At OnNet we do not think of the MMO world as WoW and everything else.
WoW is a great game, and deservedly has a great following. However, we
are trying to innovate in several areas that are distinctly
non-WoW-like. For example, this spring with Soul Master, we will be
introducing an RTS/MMOG where people will have RTS missions as well as
participate in RTS PvP. The innovation is in the MMOG elements and
leveling models where players build their heroes and armies to greater
and greater heights.



Further, we continue to challenge the sports category with Shot Online
and MLB Dugout Heroes, two sports MMOGs where players build their
golfer or baseball team. We find that the people attracted to this type
of MMOG are very different than those who would be interested in WoW.
For example, instead of talking about builds and instances, these
players are interested in discussing MLB player statistics or which
ball parks favor left handed hitters.



Of course revenue is important, however, I believe it is more useful
for small and mid-size game publishers to find new avenues for revenue.
Let the big companies continue to iterate on the traditional formulas
for making games (anyone want yet another Guitar Hero game???), it’s
more fun (and sometimes profitable) to try something new. :)

---

H. Thomas

Marketing Analyst/General Business Development, href="http://www.ntreev.net/">Ntreev USA



Having to say that a big business has captured the market completely
would be defeatist. We haven’t thrown in our towels yet!



As one of the smaller contenders [gorillas] in the MMO gaming industry
it isn’t our goal to try and compete with cellpadding="10" width="253">

games such as WoW. They have
set the precedence as a successful game after a few others and we look
to them as an example. We can refer to that ‘other’ game as the 800 lb.
gorilla, but we don’t necessarily want to beat them--we just want to
join their weight class doing what we do. Not everyone is into the high
fantasy: dungeons, dragons, goblins, etc. and not everyone can embrace
an immersive gaming environment where 5-7 hours of game play is normal.
Trying to mimic what the others have done would be overlooking all the
other potential game concepts and players. Ultimately, we’d be losing our
focus on innovation and creativity that sets us apart.



Revenue is an end goal for all. Revenue will be what keeps a company
running, allowing it to do what it does. Our goal isn’t about making
money quickly and getting out; we’re in this for the long haul, so it
is very important to us how we achieve revenue. Our passion is to bring
meaningful game experiences to players so our focus is on getting to know
our players, learning what they like and don’t like. We want to take that
information and apply it to our games with innovation and creativity.
Revenue is the result of successful innovation, so we won’t be ditching
our vision any time soon.

src="http://tentonhammer.com/image/view/82752" height="200"
width="620">



Chris Lee

Publishing VP, En Masse ( href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/taxonomy/term/2339">TERA) ™



It’s true to an extent, that gaming is a big business, however it’s a
business that marries technology, art, creativity and user interaction.
Many of these attributes are hard to quantify and predict, which can
create a level of chaos many big business types are uncomfortable with.
I believe the dilemma, as you have pointed out, is that the industry is
faced with chasing success or taking a huge risk. But it isn’t quite as
simple as that, the path to success in the MMO market is filled with
obstacles. For example, a risk that MMO creators face that console
developers don’t is that consumers have strong social ties to their
primary game, creating a significant switching cost. So even if your
product is “better,” you still might not overtake existing products.
When there is an incumbent in a competitive social space with a large
share of the market, it presents a particularly daunting challenge for
new products. The good news for gamers is that this kind of market
condition fosters competition and encourages differentiation and
innovation.

"I personally believe the industry needs to
move past the notion of
besting World of Warcraft, and that some developer needs to step up and
bring us something truly new. However, do you think that can't happen
if revenue is the number one goal?"

I agree with you, and from a business perspective for the company
willing to take a risk and to pioneer “the next big thing,” the rewards
are substantial. To repeat an existing formula, the upside is only
marginal. So it’s about risk tolerance vs. bottom line management. The
way we see it at En Masse, you can attempt to mitigate risks and follow
the crowd or you can offer something different and both pull players who
are bored with their existing library of games and grow the market by
attracting a new audience. Ultimately gamers will have the final say on
what direction the market goes, by voting with their dollars they
support innovation or drive product sameness.

---

Patrick Wyatt

COO, En Masse ( href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/taxonomy/term/2339">TERA)



One of the questions I frequently hear from gamers is, “How is TERA
going to beat the competition?” We all love to identify with a favorite
sports team and cheer its victories or lament its losses; in cinema the
biggest news is not “how good is the movie” but instead “how big was
the opening weekend” so it can be compared to other releases; so it’s
natural that a similar view applies to online games. My feeling is that
game developers need to think more about creating something that people
want to play rather than endeavoring to beat the competition.



The great thing about the games market is that there is no monopoly on
fun; it’s possible to create a game with any cellpadding="10" width="253">

size development budget
that players will love to play. So as we work on developing TERA, our
focus is to create an online world that players want to live in and
play frequently. We need to create game mechanics that are sometimes
familiar, and sometimes break out of the existing mold.



One of the reasons I’m particularly excited about TERA is the way it
combines many familiar elements of the fantasy MMORPG genre that
players know and love, and then turns around and completely redefines
other areas of gameplay to bring a new level of excitement and interest
to the game. TERA’s non-targeted combat system, which plays equally
well with either a keyboard/mouse or with a gamepad, is just more fun
to play! And coupled with the collision-based positional combat system,
which enables players to create shield walls to block monsters, set up
gauntlets to funnel their enemies, do more damage when attacking from
behind, and fundamentally redefine the way that support characters work
in combat, the new tactical combat system has much more interesting
minute-to-minute gameplay than players have seen before.



So, as I think about releasing TERA into the market, I’m not worried
that there are other games that have a large market-share. I feel
there’s an incredible opportunity to appeal to gamers with something
that’s going to raise their expectations about how a game should play;
the level of excitement generated by the new combat system, a visually
stunning online world, a play experience balanced for Western gamers,
and a return of familiar features that gamers love, will all join
together to create a product that players love for itself, not for how
it compares to the competition.

---

Brian Knox

Senior Producer, href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/taxonomy/term/2339">TERA



Evolution and refinement is the key to success. By evolving features
and ideas you begin to shape your game into something familiar yet
unique. For example TERA has all the elements of a traditional fantasy
MMO: the adventuring and questing, the dungeon encounters and
competitive PVP. We devoted our time to evolving the combat system in a
way that MMOs haven’t yet, making a much more immersive and interactive
experience. By removing the targeting system and focusing more on the
action taking place in the center of the screen it creates something
new and different. This unique feature is surrounded within many of the
other comforts you would expect from a big budget MMO and allows it to
stand out from the crowd yet have a familiar air about it.



There is plenty of room in the MMO market for high quality games, and
the quality is the key element. Players are not going to invest the
amount of time necessary in an MMO if the game is not of a high
standard. Customer support, community and, more recently, security all
need to be kept at that same level of quality you hold the game to. If
you can meet this standard then you will find your audience and be
successful as an MMO.

src="http://tentonhammer.com/image/view/82752" height="200"
width="620">







Jon Virtes

Community Manager, Runes
of Magic

style="margin: 10px; border-collapse: collapse; float: right; width: 250px;"
border="1">

href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/82750"> style="border: 0px solid ; width: 250px;" alt=""
src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/82750">

John
Virtes's Runes of Magic avatar

First of all, it needs to be said that vision and the bottom line have
to co-exist, whether it is big business or small business. You cannot
have one without the other and expect to remain in business for long.



As for the 800 lb gorilla, the market leader can always teach us a lot;
they run their service very well and there are lessons to be learned.
We also need to remember it took them time to build up to where they
are now and it was not always easy. (I remember sitting in server
queues!) But it is also something of an anomaly, such a freakishly
large success that it distorts the real picture of the genre. Sometimes
you need to look at the MMO market and remove it from the picture, to
see the forest through the trees. If you constantly compare your
company or your game to this one behemoth example it will drive you
crazy and likely lead you in the wrong direction for your product.



The trick is finding a business model that works for you and sticking
to it.

---

Cedric Gerard

International Marketing Manager, href="http://www.ankama-games.com/en">Ankama Games



Competition
is going to be at its peak in the online games market this year, with
every major publisher fighting for a slice of the pie. EA has acquired
Playfish, and other major publishers are acquiring well established
online games studios, investing in them, or developing partnerships
with them.



AAA 3D is definitely not a guarantee of success. If
you look at Tabula Rasa and Age of Conan, dozens of millions have been
invested in those games and they have not been as successful as
expected. The market is no longer limited to AAA 3D MMOGs--that may
have been the case 5 years ago, but the situation is completely
different style="margin: 10px; border-collapse: collapse; float: right; width: 250px;"
border="1">

href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/82748"> style="border: 0px solid ; width: 250px;" alt=""
src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/82748">

Cedric
Gerard of Ankama

now.



The MMOG offer is now very diversified with all
game styles covered and all possible technologies used. Browser-based
games cannot be ignored; companies such as Bigpoint and Gameforge have
generated much more revenue in the last year than most major studios.
They are very profitable companies with cost effective development and
impressive online reach, they do not have to fight the classic retail
battle that hit publishers so hard in 2009.



So, is World of
Warcraft still the one to beat? Blizzard has produced a high standard
and a very complete casual 3D MMO, and it surely gets the success it
deserves. But the lifetime of their players is probably not higher than
other similar subscription MMOGs--players move on eventually. As long
as a developer can attract a small percentage of their players, they
should be fine.



If you’re a MMOG developer, and revenue is your
goal, should you go against Blizzard and try to emulate what they are
doing? Probably not; you should try your own way. That’s why EA and
others are investing in studios that know what they are doing.



We
still have yet to see a successful console MMOG. There have been
attempts but consoles’ peripherals (and some say audiences) hardly suit
classic MMO gaming. Studios will have to move away from thinking of how
to adapt a PC MMO to consoles, and start thinking about how to develop
console specific MMOGs. Console DLC will also have to evolve; it is too
blunt now, and quality is often not the goal. Players can be very
discerning about the quality of DLC; you have to impress them if you
want them to make that purchase.

---

Peter Cesario

Director of New Business and Product Development, href="http://www.truegames.com/">True Games Interactive



Since the start of the current economic downturn, we have no doubt felt
a renewed tendency towards conservatism style="margin: 10px; border-collapse: collapse; float: right; width: 109px;"
border="1">

href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/827510"> style="border: 0px solid ; width: 109px;" alt=""
src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/82751">

Peter
Cesario of True Games Interactive

by investors and publishers
throughout the online game space. Perhaps slightly less so in the free
to play sector; though I can definitely say it is still extremely
difficult, if not nearly impossible, to get a project greenlit if it
can be even remotely deemed “niche” or risky.  That said,
attempting to go the “safe” route results in a head to head with World
of Warcraft, which has proven to be a losing proposition time and again
and I think most everyone in the industry recognizes that by now and
have been forced to get a little more creative with their strategies.



This is why True Games has chosen what we feel is a great middle-ground
with a title like href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/taxonomy/term/1801">Mytheon.
By targeting a wildly popular genre like “Action-RPG”--which has been
quite successful overall for a long time, though still relatively
underrepresented in the multiplayer online space--we feel like we’re
satisfying that need for risk aversion by investors while at the same
time avoiding that dreaded toe to toe battle with the so called 800 lb
gorilla.